Humboldt Historian

Fall 2010: Volume 58, No. 3

Speaking of Collections: The Loeffelholz Family in TrinidadDeborah MeadorWhen revolutions spread throughout Europe in the mid-19th century, Baron von Loeffelholz and his family found a refuge near Trinidad.

Eureka TheatersNaida Olsen GipsonGoing to the movies was suffused with glamour and excitement during the Depression and the War years.

Humboldt County Superior Court JudgesJeremiah Scott, Jr.Humboldt’s Superior Court Judges for the first 110 years, 1879-1990.

The Honorable Judge Don Wilkinson, PresidingSuzanne ForsytheThe human, and humorous, side of Judge Don Wilkinson is recalled by his colleagues.

The Presence of Past: Two HillsidesJerry RohdeTwo tales—one of a missing wooden leg, one of some mysterious grave markers—are neatly re- solved.

Humboldt LiliesLeota M. Ness, with an Introduction by David ImperAdventures with Lilies from Tibet to Scotia and from London to Freshwater.

Our Days and Years on Kneeland PrarieIrene Paddock IvoryLife was difficult, heartbreaking, and full of adventure for young Sterling and Irene Paddock.

This early day photograph, hand-colored by the late Sam Swanlund in 2001, appears on the cover courtesy of Wanda Swanlund. The view is looking northwest on Fifth Street at F—“the center of the universe. Everything of importance started at the intersection of Fifth and F Streets,” as Judge John Morrison recalls on page 24 of this issue (see “The Honorable Judge Don Wilkinson, Presiding”).The year of the photo must be 1909, which is the year that Mayfield’s “bazaar” appears in Humboldt County Directories at 429 5th St. The brick Gross building seen at the corner of Fifth and F still stands: it was for many years Arthur Johnson’s and is now Plaza Design. Unfortunately, the old Humboldt County courthouse, built in 1885, had to be demolished after the 1954 earthquake. Here, though, it rises above all, a beacon of justice on the frontier, with Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, at the very top. Twelve other goddesses were on hand to offer inspiration from the peaks and corners of the courthouse roof. On page 18 of this issue, Jeremiah Scott, Jr. writes about Humboldt County’s Superior Court judges for the first 110 years, many of whom served in the majestic old courthouse. Sam Swanlund’s original hand-colored photograph can be seen at Pierson’s Building Center, along with several of his other works. 